Two major mulch suppliers (they make their own) in the Knoxville, TN area have said that they will be out of mulch in a few weeks unless they can get some trucked in. Why? Increase in new landscape installs? More people wanting mulch? I don't know why, but it has got me to thinking about mulch. Why do we use it? (correct me or add to it):

1. Mulch provides a protective, moisture retaining barrier around ornamentals and over their roots.

It seems to me that the majority of the LCO's in my area are slinging too much mulch down. I call them the "tower of babel mulchers": no edging; mulch spilling out over hardscapes; lower limbs of ornamental shrubs buried; 3 foot high "volcanoe"tree rings going way too high up the tree bark. Almost every new account I pick up needs major mulch removal and proper edging done to it to achieve good results and maintain my reputation. I have painfully learned to account for this in bidding new accounts.

HHHHmmmmmm???? I think I may know where all the mulch is going!

mxmark4

04-27-2010, 09:13 PM

how about the crazy clients who feel they need mulch every six months because it starts to fade.We have a couple that all we do is shake a fork over the mulch just to make them happy because they wont listen to us .

Think Green

04-27-2010, 09:58 PM

There is a shortage in the home building market thus causing less timber cutting. The ice storms that blanketed the South along with other problems, we are short this season as well. The onslaught of demand has made it difficult to get bulk mulch for us. The bagged mulches are in abundance but it is more expensive to purchase and spread. " This is how our supplier put it!"

ACMiller

04-28-2010, 07:17 AM

I have been hearing about a shortage for a while now. The Gov't is going to start subsidizing wood producers for sending the material to an energy plant also. We will be competing with the Gov't for the price of mulch. I went to the Mobile Mulch System 2 crews putting down 18000 feet a day each. And we can't keep up. We will still install a thousand yards or so but this so much easier.